Three thoughts about the Revolution’s unexpected bye week

The New England Revolution were scheduled to play Orlando City SC on Saturday but mother nature had other plans. The lack of a game won’t stop me from sharing three thoughts.

1. The unexpected bye week will give players time to get healthy. With the season just two weeks old, the Revs had a couple of major names on their injury report. Brad Knighton, who will play backup to Cody Cropper, was listed as out with a concussion while Lee Nguyen was questionable due to the ankle contusion he suffered last week. Nguyen’s inclusion was particularly concerning as the midfielder has long been an important part of the team’s attack even if his performance during open weekend was less than stellar. Another week of rest will be good for Knighton, Nguyen, and Zachary Herivaux, who’s currently sidelined with a preseason knock. DP Xavier Kouassi will also benefit as he works his way towards full fitness.
2. Saturday’s game could’ve been a good opportunity to play Kelyn Rowe as the number 10. With Nguyen’s recovery being day-to-day, it seemed unlikely that he would start against Orlando. With this in mind, head coach Jay Heaps could’ve let Rowe run the attack without much drama, especially since he looked pretty sharp while playing the position a few times during preseason. Giving him regular season minutes behind Juan Agudelo and Kei Kamara would’ve been a worthwhile experiment.
3. The Revs now have a daunting second game. If history is any indication, the Revs-Orlando match would’ve been an ugly 0-0 affair. Obviously that’s not the ideal result, but it would’ve been enough to give the home side their first point of the season. Now the Revs will be looking to get a result against a pretty impressive FC Dallas side. Dallas does have a midweek Champions League clash, which will likely effect who plays against the Revs. That having been said, even a lineup comprised largely of reserves will present a challenge for the visitors. Just this past weekend, speedy youngsters like Cristian Colman did enough to earn a scoreless draw against Sporting KC at Children’s Mercy Park.